Features of Property Management System

Property Management System (PMS) is a computerised system that facilitates the management of properties including maintenance, personnel and legalities all through a single software. So basically it is a tool to manage your property or properties digitally. This new development has definitely replaced the fashioned, paper-based methods that were both burdensome and inefficient. With the most recent development in the system, Property Management Software favours web and cloud technology, offering their clients software-as-a-service model.

A PMS can be an owner’s one of the greatest assets. A good management system should streamline everyday tasks and increase the efficiency of the management process and if you made a mistake while choosing one, it can make your life miserable. Its purpose is to make the client’s life easier and not harder.

However, the real question is “Which is the best Property Management System?”

Well, it is difficult to answer because there is no one Management System that is ideal for every use. It majorly depends on who are and what you are looking for in the system. Following are the popular features of a Property Management System:

Accounting Feature – Tracking payables and receivables, tax filing, bank reconciliation and electronic fund transfer are a few accounting facilities many Property Management System include. These features can either be built-in or integrated with a third-party accounting system.

Lease Management – The Management System has features that help with the process of leasings like document storage, property marketing, rental applications and electronic signatures. By using these features property owners and managers have an electronic trail documenting the leasing process. This helps in saving time and paper.

Maintenance Management – This feature helps to track the property maintenance work and any maintenance request by the tenant. The tenant can submit the request for the software and can also schedule recurring tasks. Property owners and managers can outsource the work to the vendor or delegate it to an employee, check the status of the work and make payments to the vendors.

Rental Listing – Property management software allows owners and managers to list their properties directly on various real estate rental websites. This feature makes easier for the owner and manager to keep a track of the responses they are getting on their listing.

Owner Portal – Sharing documents, tracking rent collection from tenants, accessing information on financial performance and much more can be done by the owner and the manager on Owner Portal.

Tenant Portal – Via Tenant Portal, the tenant can pay the rent online, request maintenance and contact landlord. These can be done either via the web or the mobile device, depending on the software owner or manager is using.

The first step to finding the right Property Management System for you is to figure out the features that are must-haves for your property vs. the features that are just nice to have. Make a list of requirements and the questions that you need to ask the vendors to understand better that whether their software is apt for you or not.

Pro Tip: Ask the vendor to give you a trial and also what are their policies for training and after-sales services.